Anyone who buys a lot of Apple Watch bands bands knows that some of them — even many of them — can be hard to find, both in-store and online. Especially the leathers and the more trendy colors. Right now, it feels like most of them are hard to find, if not out of stock completely.
From MacRumors:
Over the past few weeks, some Apple Watch wearers have noticed that a growing portion of Apple's band inventory has been marked as "sold out," with many styles, sizes, and colors, now included in that group.
Here's the way I've come to think about Apple Watch bands: They're fashion accessories and seasonal ones at that. If I ever see one I want, I order it as fast as I can. If I'm in a flagship Apple Store and they have one of the harder-to-find bands in stock, and I can afford it, I pick it up immediately.
So far, Apple has been introducing new bands every six months. The originals in spring of 2015, Hermès and additional colors in fall of 2015, woven nylon and even more new colors in spring of 2016.
I have no special insight into Apple or Hermès manufacturing strategies, but I assume when a new band style or color is announced, they do a run based on internal demand forecasts. Some bands will be more plentiful and/or more popular than others. Perhaps the perennials get repeat runs, and the seasonals don't. I'm not sure, but I'm not taking any chances.
If there's a band you really, really want, don't take any chances either. Grab it when and if you can.
